1. Field of the Invention
The present relates to a portable computer and, more particularly, to a portable computer which can move a display towards a user and keep the display at a tilted angle.
2. Description of the Related Art
Computing devices have become an indispensable part of our daily life. With the fast development of touch technologies, most hand-held devices or electronic devices such as a tablet PC, a smart phone, and a PDA now provide touch panels instead of a mouse or a keyboard as input devices, and these devices are equipped with operating system supporting touch functions to enable intuitive and convenient operations.
As notebook PCs are usually equipped with QWERTY keyboards and touch pads for input functions and as they, also use an operating system which does not support touch functions or interfaces which recognize touch gestures, so few notebook PCs provide touch functions or designs in the past. However, as software vendors are rolling out new operating systems which can support touch functions and as people are becoming familiar with touch gestures required to operate tablet PCs or smart phones, it is now necessary for manufacturers to provide touch functions on notebook PCs or even transform their notebook PCs into tablet PCs. Due to a certain weight of the display, when a user opens the display to a suitable angle relative to the base for touch operations, the display is kept in a fixed position by a reactive torsion of a pivot bearing between the display and the base. However, when the user touches the display, a torque generated by the applied force and the distance between the point of applied force and the pivot bearing would cause the display to vibrate back and forth, making it inconvenient for the user to perform any touch function and hard to see the display clearly. Furthermore, when the user applies too much force on the display, the display could topple and fall backwards without proper support, and the display could be damaged to discourage the user to perform any touch function.
Therefore, a prior art technique discloses a support arm for supporting and pivotally connecting to the display.
In a prior art technique such as Taiwan Patent No. I316666 (U.S. Pat. No. 7,184,263B1), a portable computer uses a sheet-like support element to support a display and to let the display slide relative to the computer body via guide grooves on both sides of the keyboard to stand upright. However, this design can only apply for tablet PCs which have their displays faced upwards in a normal state and is not suitable for notebook PCs which usually have their displays faced down and towards a keyboard when not in use. Therefore, the prior art technique is designed specifically for tablet PCs having their display exposed outwardly and allows the user to slide the display to a tilted angle for operations. However, the display is not well protected, since it is exposed in many circumstances.
In another prior art technique such as Taiwan Patent No. 566583, a notebook PC has its display rotatably moved relative to a base via a plurality of connecting rods to change a viewing angle for the user. However, this prior art technique comprises a complicated design which involves the operations of pivoting, linking and sliding and various linkage elements to work. Therefore, it is disadvantageous to assemble and to operate the mechanism. Besides, with a complicated mechanism and exposed support and linkage mechanisms on both sides of the display, it is aesthetically unpleasant, and it is possible to hurt the user if the user's finger accidentally gets pinched between these mechanisms. Additionally, the prior art technique requires reserved spaces for disposing grooves and pivoting mechanisms on both sides of the base, and it also requires additional spaces for disposing supporting elements on both sides of the display case as well. Thus, soil the whole thing tends to be bulky and thick, and it could sacrifice the viewable area of the display.
Therefore, it is necessary to provide a structure which can stably support the display and slide the display to a suitable angle for the portable computer.